Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-03-06


spirit that will do its part in promoting
policies calculated to advance the inter
est of all who dwell on these shores,
whether alien or native born.
| NO GROUNDS FOR COMPLAINTS.
DR.. Crantill complains that the prohibi-
tory amendments is handicapped, so to
say, by the high-liCense measure. To
some extent his complaint is not without
foundation, but perhaps it is fortunate
circumstance that IN its aspirations to
| deal wisely with the liquor traffic society
/ is not restricted and handicapped by the
reflection that prohibition is the only
road to reform-that it is prohibition or
nothing. AS THE GAZETTE has already
told DR.. Cranfill, there are thousands of
orderly citizens, conservative and thought
full men, who are earnest and conscieL-
tious in their desire to diminish the evils
of the liquor traffic. They recognize the
fact that the traffic has features that
are deplorable and pernicious and
they want to eliminate then, as
far as practicable. At the same
time these men are not Prohibitionists;
they are opposed to ultra sumptuery leg
islation and doubt the efficacy of prohibit
ton, Judging from what they have seen
or heard of its workings in Maine, Iowa.
Kansas and Rhode Island, not to mention
local option instances. But with prohi-
bitiOn or the present system as alterna-
tives-no intermediate sround-these
men, TO be consistent, could not refuse to
vote for prohibition, even while doubling
its ability to do all that its enthusiastic
advocates claim for it. With high
licenselaW every citizen who proposes to
vote enjoys some degree of discretion. II
he believes high license will meet the
emergency he can rest content and vote
against prohibition or not vote at all. If
ne holds prohibition 10 be an improve
ment on high license his vote can and
ought to be polled for prohibition. The
question, as to which system-high-
license or prohibition-is likely to furnish
the most satisfactory results, is an open
one at best, and there are thousands of
intelligent, conscientious citizens arrayed
on each side. And after oil the Prohibi-
tionists are not so fearfully handicapped
in the contest that will open very soon.
As a matter of fact they have some
vantage points that would count very
materially in an essentially political con-
test. They have affected to regard the
Democratic party as their most formida
BILE adversary, and yet this same Demo
cratic party has dealt very literally with
them. 1t would have been wisdom on the
part of the Prohibitionists Gas THE GA
zETTE told them three months ago. to
have used every effort to postpone sub
mission of the amendment until 1882
The intervening two years could have been
occupied probably in educating the peo-
pie, by means of local option exam
pies, to an appreciation of the benefits of
prohibition in general way. But the
Zealots of the cold water party would
brook no delay; they wanted vote this
year and the Democracy has given them
what they asked-it has even equipped
j., them, to some extent, for the fight. To
commence with, the Galveston ccnven-
tiOn omitted the usual declaration anent
sumptuary laws from the platform Of the
Democracy, and it went further and de-
clared that man can be a Prohibitionist
and maintain lis good standing in the
Democratic party. This action put the
question outside the domain of politics,
leaving il to be settled as 4 purely moral
or economic issue. This is q decided ad-
vantage for the Prohibition side, for
thousands of Democrats who were anxious
to vote against the liquor trst tic have been
restrained, in local option contests,
at least, by the stutude OF their psrty re.
gaIding sumptuary laws. The declara-
tion Of he party at Galveston gives the
ProhibitioDists $4,000 votes, at q mod
crate calculation, for the August election
that otherwise they could net have
obtained. The Democracy, by making
the issue non political one, has fur
nshed fair field for al open fight and
that is all our Prohibition friends ought
to ssh. They complain, Us stated at the
outset, that the high license law is an
Offset to their prospects, but forget that
it was the Legislatures duty to be just
as well as generous-that public senti-
mert demanded compromise ground on
which conservative men might stand
men who sre not willing 10 coun enauce
the liquor law now in force, and yet who
are opposed to prohibition out and out.
The high license law furnishes this
ground and its passage, aside from the
general good it promises, was due to the
class Of men above named. DR.. Gran
fill and his friends ought to make as
vigorous a fight as they can, for THE
GAZETTE likes to see men contend stur-
Oily for their convictions, but they should
cease complaining of the Legislature and
the Democracy and asserting that they
have not had fare and generous treat
ment.